Powerful New Video Released By NSW Police To Raise Awareness For Domestic Violence

PICTURE POSED BY MODEL A shadow of a man with a clenched fist as a woman cowers in the corner, as government changes to the rules for obtaining legal aid in domestic violence cases have been declared legally flawed by the Court of Appeal.

There’s no denying that Australia is in the midst of a domestic violence crisis, with intimate partner violence the leading contributor to death, disability and ill-health in Australian women aged 15-44.

In NSW alone, police respond to more than 140,000 incidents of domestic and family violence per year.

That’s 380 cases a day and almost 16 cases an hour.

In an attempt to raise public awareness about domestic and family violence, the NSW Police force launched a powerful new video campaign on Wednesday, centred on the theme “it’s not your fault”.

Members of NSW Police’s Domestic Violence Team used their own front-line experience investigating and prosecuting domestic-violence cases to write, direct and produce the video.

NSW Police has today launched a powerful new video campaign to raise public awareness about the issue of domestic and family violence.“It’s not your fault” is the theme of the campaign, which consists of a 30-second community service announcement (CSA) for TV, as well as a longer version for cinemas and social media.In NSW, police respond to more than 140,000 incidents of domestic and family violence per year. This translates to about 380 cases every day.Today’s CSA launch coincides with a state-wide roll-out of a new process for targeting repeat domestic-violence offenders.For over a decade, NSW Police has used a process called the Suspect Targeting Management Plan (STMP) to deal with high-risk and repeat offenders.The process has recently been adapted to include high-risk domestic violence offenders, and following successful trials in the Central Metropolitan Region, this refinement is now being introduced state-wide.“The STMP model will ensure the state’s most serious domestic-violence offenders face the highest level of scrutiny by police, and allow us to intervene before they commit their next offence,” NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione said.“This renewed focus on offender accountability is part of our ongoing commitment to providing the utmost level of support to the victims of domestic and family violence.“We have made other significant headway. For example, in a world first, NSW police can now record domestic violence video evidence at the time of an incident, which relieves the victim of the emotional burden of giving evidence in court.“But a problem of this magnitude won’t go away in a hurry. We still have much more work to do, and that includes raising public awareness about the issue through campaigns like the one we are launching today,” he said.Members of NSW Police’s Domestic Violence Team used their own front-line experience investigating and prosecuting domestic-violence cases to write, direct and produce the community service announcement.The aim of the campaign is to remind people there is no excuse for domestic and family violence, and it is never the victim’s fault.“Domestic violence is a serious crime and police are committed to bringing offenders to justice,” Commissioner Scipione said.“Every day police battle the community perception that domestic violence is a ‘family matter’ or ‘private business’.“That is most definitely not the case. If you are aware this is occurring in your community, you are obliged to report it, like any other crime.“Some may find the images in these videos confronting; we do not apologise for this. Domestic and family violence is a confronting issue, and one we must continue to face head-on,” Commissioner Scipione said.NSW Police Force’s Corporate Spokesperson on Domestic and Family Violence, Assistant Commissioner Mick Fuller, said it is only fitting the videos were developed by police.“Police officers attend hundreds of domestic-violence incidents every day and see first-hand the impact and harm it has on families,” Assistant Commissioner Fuller said.“Children are the hidden victims of domestic violence, which is why children feature so prominently in the campaign.“There are no innocent bystanders in this space. By reporting domestic violence, you could prevent the next homicide,” Assistant Commissioner Fuller said.Police are urging anyone with information about domestic-violence crimes to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or use the Crime Stoppers online reporting page: https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au/ Information you provide will be treated in the strictest of confidence. We remind people they should not report crime information via our Facebook and Twitter pages.

“Domestic violence is a serious crime and police are committed to bringing offenders to justice,” he said.

“Every day police battle the community perception that domestic violence is a ‘family matter’ or ‘private business’.

“That is most definitely not the case. If you are aware this is occurring in your community, you are obliged to report it, like any other crime.”

The launch coincides with a state-wide rollout of Suspect Target Management Plans (STMP) for domestic violence reoffenders announced by both Scipione and NSW Premier Mike Baird on Wednesday.

“The STMP model will ensure the state’s most serious domestic violence offenders face the highest level of scrutiny by police, and allow us to intervene before they commit their next offence,” Scipione said.

“But a problem of this magnitude won’t go away in a hurry. We still have much more work to do, and that includes raising public awareness about the issue through campaigns like the one we are launching today.”

Baird has made it a priority to reduce the rate of domestic and family violence, and is rolling out the STMP after a successful trial.

“A trial in the St George area over the past five months resulted in nine out of 13 high-risk offenders being charged, and almost a third being placed behind bars.”

Some of the scenes in the “It’s not your fault” video may be distressing to some audiences, however this is something that Scipione remains unapologetic about.

“Some may find the images in these videos confronting; we do not apologise for this,” he said.

“Domestic and family violence is a confronting issue, and one we must continue to face head-on.”

If you or anyone you know is experiencing domestic and family violence call the national sexual assault, domestic violence counselling service on 1800 RESPECT (737732) 24-hours a day. If you are in immediate danger please call 000.